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'Wich of the Week: Eggplant Grilled Cheese

YumSugar — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 14:30:57 -0800

When dealing with Thanksgiving leftovers, sandwiches are an obvious choice - and believe me, I consumed my fair share of turkey and stuffing on wheat bread last week. But in a more unexpected repurposing, I also used the breadcrumb mixture leftover from my New Orleans-style baked oyster dish to make this twist on a grilled cheese.

In this case, the "bread" is actually sliced eggplant coated with breadcrumbs, and the cheese is provolone (though mozzarella would also be good with a marinara dipping sauce on the side). I can't say this recipe is any healthier than a typical grilled cheese, since the bread crumb mixture is made with butter, but it is a creative take on a classic for all you grilled cheese fans.

What's cool is that the golden-browned breadcrumbs take on both the look and flavor of grilled, buttered bread, and the skins of the eggplant slices resemble bread crust. The breadcrumb mixture is easy to make, even for a weeknight supper. To get the recipe and step-by-step photos, read more.

Eggplant Grilled Cheese Sandwich
Original recipe

Ingredients

2 medium to large eggplants
1/4 cup salted butter
1/4 cup olive oil, plus more for brushing eggplant
2 teaspoons finely minced garlic
2 tablespoons finely minced fresh parsley
2 tablespoons finely chopped green onions (green parts only)
2/3 cup Italian bread crumbs
1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more for seasoning
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more for seasoning
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon dried tarragon
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1 egg
4 slices of provolone cheese

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°F.
After removing the stems from the ends, slice each eggplant lengthwise into 1/2-inch thick slices, discarding the round-edged slices, for a total of eight uniform slices.

Brush eggplant lightly with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Place on a greased baking sheet and bake in oven for 30 minutes, flipping the eggplant once during baking.
Meanwhile, make breadcrumb mixture. Melt 1/4 cup butter in a skillet over low heat. Add oil, garlic, parsley, and green onions and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Mix in 2/3 cup Italian bread crumbs, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, cayenne, tarragon, and oregano. Stir until well combined and remove from heat.
In a small, shallow bowl, lightly beat the egg.
Transfer the breadcrumb mixture onto a large plate, and wipe the skillet clean with a paper towel.
To prepare each eggplant slice, dip lightly into the egg, then coat generously with breadcrumbs, pressing to stick the bread to the eggplant.

Two slices at a time, place the eggplant in the skillet over medium-low heat and cook for 2 minutes per side, until breadcrumb coating is golden brown. Top one slice of eggplant with provolone cheese and place the other slice of eggplant on top of the cheese to make a "sandwich." Cook for an additional minute per side.

Continue with the remaining eggplant slices. If desired, transfer each completed sandwich to the baking sheet and place in the oven to keep warm.

Makes 4 sandwiches.

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Don't Have Day Old Bread? Make It Yourself

partysugar — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 04:00:28 -0800

Recently, I decided to try a recipe that called for day-old bread. I wanted to make the dish that night and headed to the grocery store hopeful that I could find a loaf of day-old bread. Although I was out of luck, I chatted with the baker about my dilemma. How could I turn new bread into stale bread? Here's what she told me to do:

Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Slice the bread into 1/2-inch cubes. If your recipe calls for no crusts, remove them now.
Place the cubes in a single layer on a baking sheet. Do not season or coat with oil.
Bake for 15 minutes or until the bread cubes are toasted and dry, but not browned.

Use the dried out bread to make your recipe. This technique worked perfectly for me! How do you dry out bread?

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Pumpkin Bread Is Sugar, Spice, and Everything Nice

YumSugar — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 15:00:46 -0700

I've had Autumn on the brain for weeks now, but it wasn't until I received an inquiry about a faithful pumpkin bread recipe that the aromatic, spiced bread crossed my mind. Yet as soon as it did, I found myself craving a loaf of it. There was only one thing to do.

This tried-and-true recipe couldn't be any simpler. It doesn't require an electric beater, and you don't need to spend hours roasting your own pumpkin. The übermoist, not-to-sweet, spiced bread is the perfect breakfast, snack, or edible gift for Halloween, Thanksgiving, or anywhere in between. Want the recipe? Keep reading.

Simple Tip: Refreshing Day-Old Bread

YumSugar — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 09:00:16 -0700

Last night, I stopped off to buy a fresh baguette for dinner, only to get home and realize that the bread, having been baked that morning, wasn't exactly fresh anymore. If you've ever been stuck with a loaf of "fresh" bread, or if you want to get more mileage out of a baguette you bought the day before, try this simple trick.

Heat your oven to 250 or 300 degrees, and splash some water on top of the bread - not too much that it's soaked, but just enough that it's slightly damp on top. Then, pop the moistened bread in the oven for no more than five minutes. When you take it out, the bread will feel warm and fresh, with a crispy outside and a soft middle.

Got your own tips for dealing with old bread? Share them in the comments below.

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Yummy Link: Chocolate No-Knead Bread

YumSugar — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 14:21:31 -0800

You've probably heard of the no-knead bread phenomena, but have you heard of the chocolate no-knead bread variation? I think I'm going to have to try this one out. - Su Good Eats

How Do You Make Garlic Bread?

partysugar — Mon, 18 May 2009 03:30:07 -0700

Garlic bread is one of my all time favorite foods. I love the crisp crunch of the toasted bread smothered with tangy garlic. When I make garlic bread I don't have a set recipe that I follow; I usually just use what I have on hand. Sometimes I'll top the bread with parmesan cheese other times I'll make an herb butter and spread this on a baguette. However, lately I've been feeling uninspired.

Now when I make garlic bread, it tastes the same - my garlic bread has become boring! That's why I'm wondering, how you make garlic bread? Please share your secrets below.

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Burning Question: Why Do Recipes Call For Stale Bread?

YumSugar — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 05:50:10 -0700

Many recipes - from French toast to bread pudding - call for leftover bread. But why would anyone want to cook with old bread that's hard and dry?

Eaten out of hand, day-old bread may taste inferior to its fresh counterpart. But stale bread actually has virtuous characteristics that can make it preferable to cook with. According to food science authority Harold McGee, when freshly baked bread cools, its starches reorganize to form bonds that are even firmer and stronger than they were before. This means that if the bread is soaked in a wet substance - such as eggs for French toast or milk for bread pudding - it will still retain its sponge-like structure rather than falling apart. Bread crumbs are an ideal binding agent in cooking for the same reason: even when wet, they will maintain structure.

Got a burning question? Contact us.

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Taste Test: Domino's Bread Bowl Pastas

YumSugar — Thu, 07 May 2009 14:00:53 -0700

The world of fast food is certainly quick paced, so the second Domino's begun advertising five flavors of pasta housed in a bread bowl, it seemed everybody was buzzing about it. When Party and I first got word of these monsters, we were simultaneously shocked (who came up with the concept?), appalled, and eager to try them. Yesterday turned out to be the Domino's day of reckoning - to find out how the bowls stood up to their shock value, read more.

It's hard to fathom why Domino's rolled out this concept of carbs inside more carbs, but the fact that competitor Pizza Hut has already racked up more than $500 million in sales of its Tuscani Pastas and lasagna, puts things more into perspective. However, as soon as we opened the delivery, we were faced with many unanswered questions: How many people was each bread bowl supposed to feed? Was the dish designed to be eaten like a pizza, or were we supposed to eat the pasta first, then the bowl?

Pasta Primavera: This bread bowl was filled with pasta, baby spinach, diced tomatoes, mushrooms, onions, and a goopy, oily Alfredo sauce. While the sole vegetarian option was filled with vegetables, I questioned whether the dish contained any protein.

Chicken Carbonara: Although this tasted somewhat like carbonara, it was covered with similar globs of white sauce.

Three Cheese Mac-N-Cheese: This was our least favorite. We love macaroni and cheese, but the flavors of the dish - bland, artificial nacho cheese, subpar penne, and a yeasty bread bowl - just did not seem to meld at all.

Italian Sausage Marinara: If we had to choose a best of the tasting, it would have been the Italian Sausage Marinara, which was rather reminiscent of regular pizza delivery with breadsticks. But then again, why not just order pizza and breadsticks?

Chicken Alfredo: All of the bowls were loaded with sodium (I drank water for hours afterward), but the Chicken Alfredo was swimming in a sauce that was over-the-top salty, to the point of being unpleasant to eat.

Unsurprisingly, the Pasta Primavera, Chicken Carbonara, and Chicken Alfredo flavors - which possess the same mysterious creamy white sauce - all taste remarkably similar. The bread bowl itself, which tastes a lot like Domino's breadsticks, was satisfying, but overall, unless we were starving and had no other options, or were carbo loading for a marathon the next day, we wouldn't eat this again.

Have you tried any of the Bread Bowl Pastas? If so, what was your assessment of them?

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Would You Eat This Domino's Pasta Bread Bowl?

YumSugar — Tue, 19 May 2009 05:50:32 -0700

When we first found out Domino's was launching Bread Bowl Pastas, we were shocked - and so were you. While a few of you admitted to thinking they looked really good and conceded you'd eaten worse, many of you were entirely grossed out. "Completely awful," DCStar commented. "What were they thinking?!" We, too, weren't crazy about the idea of carbs loaded inside more carbs, but in the end, our curiosity drove us to taste test them. What about you: would you eat a Bread Bowl Pasta?

52 Weeks of Baking: Irish Soda Bread

YumSugar — Thu, 15 Mar 2007 13:03:40 -0700

This weekend we made a Guinness Beef Stew (although why we were making stew on such a gorgeous day is beyond me...) and I figured that a good hearty Irish Soda Bread would be a nice accompaniment. So I dug out the trusty Baking Illustrated and gathered up all my ingredients.

Since the stew took over 8 hours to make, and since I am the world's greatest procrastinator, I kept saying, "Oh I'll make the bread in a little bit." The boyfriend kept asking when I was starting and I kept saying, "soon, soon..." Then suddenly, the stew was almost done, the bread was just a pile of ingredients, the butter was beyond room temp (it was really hot out and I didn't pay attention, I highly recommend room temp butter and nothing more) and I needed to get cracking!

So I pulled out the ol' mixing bowl and got to work. It was barely done in time (it could have used a little bit longer to set) and an old friend I hadn't seen in over a year arrived while I was halfway done (translation: this bread did not get my full-undivided attention). I guess the bf was right, I should have started earlier in the day...

At any rate, the bread held up really nicely and paired fantastically with the stew. If this is what I get with haste and negligence, I can only imagine what a real loaf would be like (translation: this recipe is easy and hard to screw up). For step by step pictures and the full recipe, read more

Classic Irish Soda Bread
From Baking Illustrated and America's Test Kitchen

3 cups (15 oz) low-protein unbleached all-purpose flour (although I used regular all-purpose flour and it came out okay)
1 cup (4 oz) plain cake flour
2 tbsp sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp cream of tartar
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp softened unsalted butter, plus 1 tbps melted butter for crust
1 1/2 cups buttermilk

Pre-heat oven to 400F.
Whisk flours, sugar, baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt in a large bowl.
Work the softened butter into the dry ingredient with a fork or your fingertips. Do this until the texture resembles coarse crumbs.
Add buttermilk and stir with a fork just until the dough begins to come together.
Turn the dough out onto a flour-coated work surface. Knead until the dough becomes cohesive and bumpy (12 - 14 turns, do not overknead, you do not want it to be smooth).
Pat the dough into a round about 6 inches in diameter and 2 inches in height.
Place on a greased or parchment paper-lined baking sheet.
Score the dough by cutting a cross shape on the top of the loaf.
Bake until loaf is golden brown and a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean.
Remove the loaf from the oven and brush the surface with the melted butter.Ignore this baking pan, I just needed somewhere to set the loaf...
Cool to room temperature, 30-40 minutes.

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